Personal reflections about the work of the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect

Created by amendments in 1988 to the Child Abuse Treatment and Prevention Act of 1974 and first convened in 1989, the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect issued a series of passion- and research-laden reports that articulated a new neighborhood-based strategy for child protection in the United States. In so doing, the Board went far beyond the vision of its congressional creators, the most relevant federal agencies, and the field itself. The dedication, daring, collegiality, and public spirit of the drafters and ultimately the moral and intellectual power of the reports themselves were awe-inspiring, as was the level of public attention given to the Board's initial declaration of a national emergency. However, the specific effects on policy were quite limited. Possible reasons for the enormous gap between the strength of the Board's vision and the weakness of its implementation are reviewed. In the end, the history of the Board may be a case study of a single but notable step in a long process toward redemptive cultural change in the status and safety of children.